Coke oven door



April 7, 1970 PETERSON ETAL 3,505,174

COKE OVEN noon Filed Feb. 7, 1968 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 9 1 \le I M4 "II/IF I I] L [2 i I 4 INVENTORS RALPH N. PETERSON DONALD MCCAMPBELL THADDEUS J. SMITH 1m Jm/MW ATTORNEYS April 7, 1970 PETERSON ETAL 3,505,174

COKE OVEN DOOR 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 7, 1968 FIG. 2

INVENTOR5 RALPH N. PETERSON DONALD McCAMPBELL BYTHADDEUS J. SMITH ATTORNEYS United States Patent O 3,505,174 COKE OVEN DOOR Ralph N. Peterson, Cleveland, Donald McCampbell,

Parrna, and Thaddeus J. Smith, Brecksville, Ohio, assignors to W. E. Plechaty Company, Cleveland, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Filed Feb. 7, 1968, Ser. No. 703,727 Int. Cl. Cb 25/06 US. Cl. 202248 18 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A coke oven door having a plug assembly detachably mounted on the door frame. The plug assembly including a plurality of monolithic sections of refractory material each detachably secured in end-to-end relationship on a support for independent removal and/or replacement thereof.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to coke oven doors, and more particularly relates to plug-type doors for use in closing off the ends of coking chambers or the like.

The present invention contemplates certain improvements in the construction of coke oven doors which overcome important problems heretofore encountered in the construction and use of plug type coke oven doors. In practice, the refractory plug section of the coke oven door generally extends into the coking chamber wherein it is subjected to the highly elevated temperatures of the coking operation. Upon opening and/ or removal of the door from the oven the refractory plug sections are subjected to severe thermal shock due to the contact therewith with the temperature of the surrounding ambient atmosphere. Such severe thermal gradients cause cracking and spalling of the refractory sections which results in a relatively short life thereof. Heretofore, various methods have been employed in the construction and/or supporting of the plug sections in order to overcome such difficulties. Such methods have included the use of specially designed metallic connectors, such as wire mesh or the like, formed in situ with the refractory material of the plug sections or by the use of heavy metal sections, such as I-beams or the like, disposed adjacent the vertical edges of the door frame for holding the sections in place. However, such methods are not only expensive to produce and maintain, but are not entirely satisfactory in preventing cracking and spalling of the parts due to the thermal distortion imparted to the metallic connectors, particularly at elevated temperatures. Also, it has heretofore been required in many cases that the entire door and/or plug assembly be removed in order to repair and/or replace the same upon wear and/or damage thereto. Such repair and/or replacement is not only expensive and time consuming, but results in the door being out of service for considerable periods of time. Furthermore, periodic removal of the door for service additionally requires very large space areas in order to effect the repairs.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an improved construction for a coke oven door and to the support for the plug assembly which comprises one or more support members, each of which detachably mounts thereon a plurality of monolithic plug sections of refractory material disposed in end-to-end relationship for closing off the open end of the coking chamber. Anovel retainer arrangement detachably connects each of the plug sections on its respective support member for ready independent removal and/ or replacement thereof. In another form, the plug assembly comprises a multi-part construction wherein each plug ice section includes a pair of spaced, oppositely disposed monolithic slabs of refractory material which together provide a recess for supporting thereon a plurality of mating block-like monolithic members of refractory material which can be readily and independently removed from coacting engagement with the monolithic supporting slabs upon wear and/ or damage thereto.

By the present invention, therefore, there is provided an improved construction for a coke oven door which incorporates a novel refractory plug section which can be readily and inexpensively produced and maintained, and which enables any number of the plug sections to be independently removed and replaced upon wear and/or damage thereto without having to remove the entire door to effect service or repair thereof. Accordingly, such construction effectively prolongs the wear life of the door and reduces the service time heretofore required to maintain such doors as was heretofore the case with other known types of coke oven door constructions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION 'OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is an enlarged fragmentary horizontal section view showing one form of the coke oven door incorporating the novel plug assembly in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary, generally perspective view of the plug assembly removed from the coke oven door arrangement shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary, side elevation view partly in section showing another embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 4 is a generally perspective view which has been broken, showing the female supporting slabs removed from the assembly of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a generally perspective view showing one of mating male sections removed from the assembly of FIG. 3; and

FIG. 6 is a vertical section view of the mating male section shown in FIG. 4.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring now again to the drawings and in particular to FIGS. 1 and 2 thereof, there is illustrated one form of the plug-type coke oven door, designated generally at 2, for use in a conventional type coke oven battery having coking chambers 4 disposed in alternate relationship between refractory heating walls 6 which may be supported at their front ends by vertical buck stays, as known in the art.

Each coking chamber 4 is provided with a coke oven door, designated generally at 8, which is supported by a door frame 10 which is secured in place at the open end of the coking chamber 4 adjacent the heating walls 6. A locking mechanism 12 is attached to the outer side of the door 8 for sealing the door in closed position with respect to the frame 10. A refractory plug assembly 14 is attached to the inner or chamber side of the door 8 for disposition, in the closed position, between the heating walls 6 of the chamber 4.

In the form shown, the coke oven door 8 includes a rigid, metal outer supporting section 16 which includes oppositely disposed side beam plates 18 and transverse bridging plates 19 which are attached together, such as by weldments or the like, to provide the unitary structure shown. The side beams 18 may be provided with flange portions 20 which extend horizontally outwardly toward one another. When the door is in its closed position, it is supported by the door frame 10 by suitable connections (not shown) disposed between the frame 10 and the outer supporting section 16 in a manner as known in the art.

As shown, the door 8 illustrated is provided with an intermediate sealing section which includes a flexible metallic plate 22 which extends across the chamber opening and into overlapping relationship with the confronting surfaces 24 of the door frame by means of angle members 25 of generally inverted T-shaped configuration which may be attached adjacent the marginal edges of the plate 22. The plate 22 is itself mounted on the outer section 16 by means of suitable fasteners 26, such as a nut and bolt arrangement, extending through a metallic base plate -28 which supports the refractory plug assembly 14 and through the transverse portion 19 of the outer supporting section 16. Suitable spacer plates 30 may be disposed between the flexible plate 22 and the outer supporting section 16, as desired. Such spacer plates may be held in position by means of the fasteners 26, as seen in FIG. 1.

In the invention, the flexible sealing plate 22 may be held in horizontal spaced relation fromthe outer section 16 of the door 8 by selectively adjustable means. In the form shown, such means comprises a pair of horizontally disposed adjustable members 32, such as threaded bolts, which are disposed for threaded coacting engagement through ears 34 attached to and extending laterally outwardly from the side beams 18 of the outer section 16. A resilient element 36, such as a coiled spring or the like, may be disposed around the members 32 so as to hear at one end against the head 38 of each member 32 and at the other end against the respective ears 34. By this arrangement, upon axial adjustment of the members 32 the sealing plate 22 can be adjusted horizontally in the desired spaced relationship with respect to the door frame 10 to provide a tight sealing engagement therewith.

Now in accordance with the invention, the plug assembly 14 which is mounted on the base plate 28 is comprised of a refractory material in the form of a plurality of monolithic sections, such as 40 to 45, as seen in FIG. 2. The monolithic sections may be made of a good insulating and refractory material, such as fire clay or the like, by casting, molding or the like, as desired.

In one form, the monolithic sections are preferably of an elongated predetermined length, such as about l-foot, with a polygonal shape in transverse cross section (FIG. 1) defined by oppositely disposed inclined side surfaces 46 and 48 and oppositely disposed parallel inner and outer surfaces 50 and 52. Each section preferably includes a relatively large diameter cylindrical bore 54 extending vertically inwardly from the inner surface 50. The bore 54 communicates at one end with a reduced diameter cylindrical bore 56 which extends vertically through the section and which opens at its opposite end into a recessed slot 58. The slot is preferably of a polygonal, such as inverted truncated shape, which extends across the full transverse dimension of the section within the outer surface 52, as seen in FIG. 2.

As best seen in FIGS. 1 and 2, a plurality of sections, such as 40 to 45, are mounted in side-by-side relationship on the base plate 28 by means of a novel retainer mechanism, designated generally at 60. As shown, the mechanism 60 includes an anchor plate having a polygonal, such as inverted, truncated shape, corresponding in contour that of the recess slot 58 which is defined by a pair of oppositely disposed, inclined web plates 62 and 64. The Web plates 62 and 64 are integrally attached, such as by suitable weldments or the like, to the base plate 28 and extend angularly upwardly and inwardly toward one another from the base plate 28. The upper ends of the web plates 62 and 64 are each integrally attached, such as by suitable weldments or the like, to a pair of spaced, oppositely disposed angle plates 66 and 68 which are of a generally U-shaped configuration, as seen in FIG. 1. The angle plates 66 and 68 are integrally attached to the base plate 28, such as by suitable weldments or the like, and are spaced apart a suflicient distance so as to provide an elongated slot 70 which extends throughout the entire transverse dimension of the base plate 28. By this arrangement, the retainer mechanism 60 provides a strong, rigid unitary construction for mounting the plug sections in detachable relationship with respect to the supporting base plate 28.

In the embodiment illustrated, the respective plug sections 40 to 45 are detachably connected to the base plate 28 by means of suitable fasteners in the form of an elongated bolt 72 disposed in the bores 54 and 56. The bolt 72 has a laterally projecting head 74 at one end which is disposed in the elongated slot 70 defined between the angle plates 66 and 68 in the manner of a key-way connection. The other end of the bolt 72 may be provided with a suit-able fastener 76, such as a threaded nut or the like, for securing the respective plug section in superposed relationship with respect to the base plate 28. Conveniently, the bore 56 may be provided with a cylindrical metallic liner sleeve 78 while the bore 54 may be providcd at its bottom with a metallic seat 80 so as to minimize abrasive wear between the assembled parts.

A plurality of base plates 28 may be attached to the outer supporting section 16 of the door 8 each of which in turn detachably mounts thereon a plurality of the monolithic plug sections, such as 40 to 45, so as to completely close off the open end of the respective coke oven chamber 4. By this arrangement, any one of the respective plug assemblies 14 or any one of the individual monolithic plug sections, such as 40 to 45, can be readily removed and/ or replaced Without the requirement to remove the entire door to efiFect service and/or repair thereof.

In FIGS. 3 to 6, there is illustrated another embodiment of the invention wherein the plug assembly 14a is of a rnulti-part construction comprising an elongated, monolithic female outer or base member 82 which provides a support for a plurality of mating monolithic inner members 84 to 91 (FIG. 3) which are detachably mounted on the member 82. The female and male members are preferably of identical construction with the female members 82 being of a length sufficient, such as one foot, to provide a support for a predetermined number of female members thereon. Accordingly, the base members 82 may be of any suitable length and/ or number 50 as to extend across the entire opening of the coking chamber. As shown, each female member 82 includes a body defined by a pair of spaced, oppositely disposed, elongated slabs 94 and 96 attached by fasteners 98, such as by suitable nuts and bolts, which may be provided through openings 100 provided in the respective slabs and connected to a metallic baseplate 102. The baseplate 102 may be attached to the outer supporting section 16 of the door in the manner as aforementioned in connection with the description of FIGS. 1 and 2 herein.

In this embodiment, the slabs 94 and 96 may be of polygonal, such as rectangular, shape in top plan, each of which includes oppositely inclined upper surfaces 104 and 106 which extend downwardly and inwardly toward one another in a direction of the baseplate 102 so as to define a recessed slot 110 which extends horizontally between the opposed ends of the respective slabs. A pair of spaced, oppositely disposed, generally U-shaped angle plates 112 and 114 are disposed at the bottom of the recess 110 between the slabs 94 and 96 so as to define therebetween a key-way like slot 116 therebetween. The angle plates 112 and 114 may be attached to the baseplate 102, such as by suitable weldments or the like. The outer side surfaces 118 and 120 of the respective slabs may be inclined in a direction inwardly away from the baseplate 102 or may be of a generally vertical construction, as desired.

The monolithic male mating sections, such as 84 to 91, may each include a block-like body of generally polygonal construction defined by oppositely disposed parallel upper 122 and lower 124 surfaces, oppositely disposed parallel end surfaces 126 and 128 and oppositely inclined side surfaces 130' and 132 which extend downwardly and outwardly away from the upper surface 122. The block-like body of each section preferably includes a centrally disposed, enlarged diameter cylindrical bore 136 which communicates with a concentrically disposed reduced diameter cylindrical bore 138 which together extend between the upper and lower surfaces 122 and 124. The bores 136 and 138 together define a passageway for receiving therethrough a suitable fastener 140, such as a nut and bolt, for attachment of the respective section to the baseplate 102. This attachment may be accomplished by disposition of the head 142 of the bolt within the keyway slot 116 defined by the angle plates 112 and 114 together with the use of a threaded nut (not shown) which threadably coacts with the other end of the bolt in the manner as described in connection with the description of FIGS. 1 and 2 for detachably connecting the respective plug sections in superposed relationship on the associated female members 82. In this form, the bore 138 may be provided with a metallic innerlining sleeve 144 and the bore 136 with a metallic seat 146 for the purposes, as aforementioned.

In this form, the lower surface 124 of each of the plug sections, such as 84 to 91, is provided with an integral tenon-like projection 150 which depends centrally downwardly therefrom (FIG. 5) and which is defined by oppositely inclined side surfaces 152 which converge in a direction toward one another so as to correspond in contour to the horizontally extending recessed slot 110 provided between the respective slabs 94 and 96 which comprise the associated female members 82. The entire plug assembly can be removed and/or replaced by simple detachment of the associated baseplate, such as 102, or any one of the monolithic male members 84 to 91, can be removed and/or replaced by simple detachment from the associated monolithic female support member 82. Hence, the monolithic male members are more or less of an expendable construction which can be quickly and easily removed and/ or replaced with relatively little expense, thereby facilitating service and/or repair to the door without having to remove the same from assembled relationship with the coke oven.

In the embodiments illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 6 of the drawings, the locking mechanism 12 for maintaining the coke oven doors in closed sealing engagement with the associated door frames may be of a conventional construction comprising a locking bar 160 which is adapted to engage the inner side of conventional door retaining hooks 162 connected to the door frame. Each locking bar 160 is mounted on the associated outer supporting section 16 of the door by means of a spindle 164 upon the outer end of which is rotatably mounted the locking bar 160. The spindle 164 has an integral collar 166 which bears against an integral portion 168 of the locking bar and which threadably coacts at its other end with a threaded nut 170. The locking bar is resiliently mounted by means of a dual compression spring arrangement 172 and 174 which are disposed around the spindle 160 between bearing plates 176 and 178 which are held in axial alignment by means of circumferentially spaced rods 180. The plate 176 has an opening 182 therein for receiving the spindle therethrough. The rods 180 are connected at one end to the plate 176 and at the other end to another plate 184 which is attached to the portion 168 of the locking bar. Moreover, as the locking bar 160 is rotated in one direction, it acts to engage the retaining hooks 162 so as to force the door inward to provide adequate sealing engagement with the door frame 10 for locking the door in closed position. Rotation of the spindle 164, and hence, the locking bar in the opposite direction acts to relieve the sealing engagement with the door frame so as to unlock the door.

The terms and expressions which have been used are used as terms of description and not of limitation, and there is no intention in the use of such terms and expressions of excluding any equivalents of any of the features shown or described, or portions thereof, but it is recognized that various modifications are contemplated within the scope of the invention claimed.

We claim:

1. A plug assembly for use with a coke oven door comprising,

a support member,

a: plurality of refractory plug sections detachably mounted in aligned, superposed relationship on said support member,

each of said plug sections including an elongated opening extending entirely through said plug sections,

a retainer mechanism attached to said support member and adapted for connecting said plug sections to said support member,

said retainer mechanism including an anchor plate attached to said support member and a plurality of retainer elements each detachably connecting a respective one of said plug sections to said support member,

said retainer element extending through said opening being movably connected at one end to said anchor plate, and

a fastener assembly disposed Within said opening, ad-

jacent to and detachably connecting the opposite end of said retainer element to said plug section being accessible from the exterior of said plug sections to enable independent removal and replacement of a respective one of said plug sections.

2. A plug assembly in accordance with claim 1 wherein,

each of said plug sections comprises a monolithic mass of refractory material.

3. A plug assembly in accordance with claim 1 wherein,

each of said plug sections is of a multi-piece construction, each section including a pair of monolithic slab members of refractory material detachably mounted on said support member, and

a plurality of block-like monolithic members detachably mounted on said slab members.

4. A plug assembly in accordance with claim 3 wherein,

said slab members together provide a recess portion therebetween, and

said block-like members, each including a tenon-like projection, adapted for engagement with said recess portion.

5. A plug assembly in accordance with claim 1 wherein,

said plug sections each include a recess portion,

said retainer mechanism comprising an anchor plate attached to and extending upwardly from the general plane of said support member and adapted for engagement within the recess portions of said plug sections.

6. A plug assembly in accordance with claim 5 wherein,

said anchor plate includes a key-way slot, and

said retainer elements each comprising a headed memslidably disposed at one end within said slot.

7. A plug assembly in accordance with claim 3,

wherein,

said retainer mechanism includes a pair of spaced, anchor plates attached to said support members and defining therebetween a 'key-way slot, and

said retainer elements each comprising a headed member adapted for sliding movement at one end within said slot and at its other end adapted to be secured to the interior of said plug sections.

8. A plug assembly in accordance with claim 1,

including wear means disposed in said opening in said plug sectrons adapted for engageable coaction with said retainer mechanism.

'9. A plug assembly in accordance with claim 1 wherein,

retainer mechanism comprises an anchor plate including a pair of inclined web portions extending convergently toward one another in a direction away from said support.

10. A plug assembly in accordance with claim 9,

wherein,

said retainer elements each comprise a headed member adapted for slidable engagement adjacent its headed end within said slot, and

at its other end adapted to be secured within the opening in the respective of said plug sections.

11. The plug assembly for use with a coke oven door comprising,

a support member,

a plurality of refractory plug sections detachably mounted in aligned, superposed relationship on said support member, each of said plug sections including an elongated opening extending entirely through said plug sections,

a retainer mechanism connected to said support member and adapted for connecting said plug sections to said support member, said retainer mechanism including an anchor means attached to said support member and a plurality of retainer elements each detacha-bly connecting a respective one of said plug sections to said support member,

a fastener assembly disposed within said opening, ad-

jacent to and detachably connecting the opposite end of said retainer element to said plug section being accessible from the exterior of said plug sections to enable independent removal and replacement of a respective one of said plug sections,

said plug sections each including at least one recessed portion extending transversely thereof adapted to be disposed in engaged relationship with each of said anchor means and the engaged portion of said anchor means conforming identically with the confronting portion of said plug sections to provide a tight sealing engagement of said plug sections on said coke oven door.

12. A plug assembly in accordance with claim 11,

wherein said retainer element extends through said opening being movably connected at one end to said anchor means.

13. A plug assembly in accordance with claim 11 wherein,

each of said plug sections comprises a monolithic mass of refractory material. 14. A plug assembly in accordance with claim '11 wherein,

each of said plug sections is a multi-piece construction,

each section including a pair of monolithic slab members of refractory material detachably mounted on said support member, and a plurality of block-like monolithic members detachably mounted on said slab members. 15. A plug assembly in accordance with claim 14 wherein,

said slab members include inclined surfaces defining said recessed portion therebetween, and said block-like members each include a tenon-like projection adapted for engagement within said recessed portion. 16. A plug assembly in accordance with claim 11 wherein,

said anchor means comprises an anchor plate attached to and extending upwardly from the general planes of said support member and adapted for engagement within the recessed portions of said plug sections. 17. A plug assembly in accordance with claim 15 wherein,

said anchor plates include a key-way slot, and said retainer elements comprise a headed member slidably disposed at one end within said slot. 18. A plug assembly in accordance with claim 17, wherein,

said key-Way slot is defined by said pair spaced anchor plates attached to said support member.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,298,930 1/ 1967 Hartman et al. 202-248 FOREIGN PATENTS 838,717 6/1960 Great Britain.

NORMAN YUDKOFF, Primary Examiner D. EDWARDS, Assistant Examiner U.S. Cl. X.R. l10173 

